Northwest Blog

Written by: Steve Booth, 4th grade teacher at Laporte Public School Alex Kingbird, Abe Tusler and Dayne Nielsen built their own fire  in the Winter Survival Skills class at Deep Portage. "Best ever field trip!" and "I can't wait to go back!" were some of the reactions from students after a recent overnight field trip to the Deep Portage Environmental Learning Center near Hackensack. Teachers accompanied the students along with several volunteer parents and a grandparents. The April trip was planned last fall and archery and canoeing were originally on the schedule, but with the extension of snow and winter this season, the trip was modified to include winter survival skills and a group snow chase game. Fourth graders were outdoors in 10 degree temperatures building shelters in small groups from natural materials and collecting combustible materials and learning the best way to build a one match fire. Later in the day all 34 students were o

L to R: Nate Dorr, Raelene Baker, Erica Gerrity, Jenny Greenleaf, and Emily Lindell Each woman experiences pregnancy differently. It’s a time of physiological changes and months of anticipation, planning, and preparation. However, for women who are serving time behind bars, it can be a very isolating experience. There is a stigma around women who have been convicted of crimes, and their needs are often overlooked while they are serving a sentence. Luckily, women of the Minnesota Prison Doula Project are here to advocate for and support this underserved population. The Minnesota Prison Doula Project started in 2008 with a mission to provide pregnancy and parenting support for incarcerated women. Trained doulas provide birth support as well as group-based and individual education to pregnant women and mothers. The goal is to nurture healthy mother-child relationships and increase parenting confidence and skills. Currently the project is operating in seven facilities in Minnesota.